Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
for a slightly less jumpy ride. Most visitors take about 2 hours to go through the
whole shebang, from the taking of the sacred photo on the deck of the USS
Enterprise
to actually riding the rides (and the wait for these can be up to an hour).
A gift shop and a “galactic eatery” are onsite for those who need a memento of
their encounter (or get hungry). Many around me seemed enthralled by the whole
experience, especially the Klingon Encounter (the stronger of the two rides). I per-
sonally enjoyed the backstage tour—a look at how all the effects were achieved—
more than the attraction itself (read about that on p. 172).
A note on pricing:
Half-price tickets to this attraction are often available from
the half-price ticket booths on the Strip, so be sure to stop by before heading over
to the Hilton.
TELEVISION
If you've ever felt jealous of those Nielsen families, here's the chance to make your
opinions heard. CBS has set up shop in the MGM Grand, offering the
CBS
Television City Research Center
5
(in the MGM Grand;
%
702/891
-
5752; free
admission, but tickets are required; children must be over 10 and accompanied by
an adult; daily 8am-10pm).
Here, visitors act as guinea pigs for the new pilots the
network is considering adding to its line-up. Other members of the CBS corpo-
rate family, including CBS, MTV, VH-1, Nickelodeon, UPN, King World,
Paramount Television, Showtime, TNN, and CMT also occasionally screen
upcoming shows here. There are sessions for families and for adults only; usually,
the child-friendly programming is screened earlier in the day. You'll see uniformed
CBS employees handing out tickets to the screenings right in front of the
Research Center and in MGM's basement food court. As you watch, you jiggle a
little knob up and down indicating how much you like or dislike what's happen-
ing on the screen. I sat through an execrable sitcom that never made it to air, giv-
ing it “2s” for most of the half hour; because I enjoy pranking, I upped my rating
to a “10” every time the dog entered the room. (He, he, he.) I have to say, even
though the show was the pits, I enjoyed the experience and the weird feeling of
power it gave me . . . but that may just be me. I write guidebooks, so I probably
have some sort of strange gene in my system that compels me to review things.
VIEWS
The lights swirl and the crowds develop intriguing patterns when you take in the
Strip from an angle usually reserved for eagles. Taking in the view is a top activ-
ity in Vegas, whether you do it from the balcony of a hot dance club (p. 205) or
through the window of a high up, Strip-facing hotel room. But if you're not into
clubbing or get a room that faces the hills, what do you do? Possibly, you might
pay the steep fees it takes to get to the top of the
Eiffel Tower Experience
(in Paris
Las Vegas;
%
888/266
-
5687 or 702/946
-
7000;
$
9 adults,
$
7 seniors and children
6-12; daily 9:30am-12:30am; AE, DISC, MC, V)
on the Center Strip; or up to the
observation deck of the tallest building in the Southwest, the
Stratosphere
Observation Deck
(in the Stratosphere;
%
800/99-TOWER or 702/380
-
7777;
$
9.95 adults,
$
6 seniors and children 4-12; Sun-Thurs 10am-1am, Fri-Sat 10am-
2am; MC, V).
The first is a slavish recreation of the actual Eiffel Tower, but at a
